Ollie Pope has been in sensational form for Surrey with the bat and has been called up to the England squad for the second Test versus India at Lord's.

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August 7, 2018

UPDATED: August 7, 2018 21:18 IST

Ollie Pope bats at No. 6 for Surrey in first-class cricket (AP Photo)

HIGHLIGHTS

Ollie Pope has replaced Dawid Malan in the England squad for the second Test

Pope has scored 1012 runs in 15 first-class games for Surrey

Pope said that he wants to follow Sam Curran's path for England

Young Surrey batsman Ollie Pope is excited and ready to make his Test debut for England against India at Lord's on Thursday.

Pope, who replaced Dawid Malan in the squad for the second Test of the five-match series, is all likely to be handed his Test cap on Thursday and he says that he wants to follow his teammate Sam Curran's path if he gets a game for the Three Lions.

Pope, 20, is considered to be one of the brightest prospects in English cricket currently and he has already scored 1012 runs in 15 first-class games for Surrey. And he says that he is similar to his county teammate S. Curran, who was the game-changer for England in the first Test.

Sam took four important wickets in the first innings at Edgbaston and then scored a match-winning 63 in the second innings, after his team was reduced to 87/7 on Day 3 of the Birmingham Test.

Ollie Pope and Sam Curran have been two of Surrey's brightest stars in county cricket recently (AP Photo)

And, Curran, who was only playing his second Test, will act as Pope's inspiration when he gets to play for England.

"It's almost that naivety in the whole thing," Pope told reporters at Lord's on Tuesday. "I think I'm probably similar to him (Curran) just ready to put the shirt on and just want to perform at my best.

"We've both played a fair bit of county cricket now and things have gone on an upward spiral."

Pope's rise in the ranks has been nothing short of a whirlwind ride and he agrees to the fact that it has indeed been hard to believe.

"If someone told me I'd be in the squad for the second test at Lord's at the start of the season, I wouldn't have really believed them," Pope, who is averaging 85 for Surrey in the county championship this year, said.

"Likewise, if someone told me I was going to make my Championship debut last year, I wouldn't have believed them.

"It's nice to do it with Sam in the same team. When I made my Surrey debut there were four 19-year-olds in there at the same time. Things happen quickly. It's exciting."

Pope, a wicket-keeper, who bats at six for his county side, could ask to go up the order and play at No. 4 in the absence of Malan and Ben Stokes in the side. But, he feels that he is comfortable playing spin and that won't be a problem.

"If required (to bat at four), yes," Pope said. "Especially against this Indian side. They bowl a lot of spin, so I don't think there's a massive difference.

"When I bat at six I can be in in the 10th over or for the second new ball. Four to six region, I don't think there's a massive difference in the way you play."

England won the first Test by 31 runs and the match at Lord's will be followed by games at Trent Bridge (August 18), The Rose Bowl (August 30) and The Oval (September 7).

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